The Electric House starts with Buster's graduation ceremony as the first of his comic misfortunes, including a mix-up of diplomas so Buster receives a diploma in electrical engineering.
This leads to a job opportunity: electrifying the family house of the girl he's sweet on.
A great chance, so Buster studies hard and soon installs a useful and impressive set of electric appliances.


This movie is part of the collection: Silent Films

Director: Edward F. Cline, Buster Keaton
Producer: Joseph M. Schenck
Production Company: Buster Keaton Productions
Sponsor: k-otic.com
Audio/Visual: silent, black & white
Keywords: Silent; Comedy; Buster Keaton
Contact Information: www.k-otic.com

Creative Commons license: Public Domain

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Reviewer: pickford82 - - August 24, 2009
Subject: Truly hilarious! Don't miss it!
I know there are so many short films of Buster Keaton that one may be perplexed about which to see first of all. While some of them are extremely hilarious, others make you just smile and chuckle at best (like the mediocre "The Blacksmith"), even if they are nice and smart. "The Electric House" belongs to the first category. I just watched it and I must say it's terrific! It made me laugh more than "One Week", "The Boat" and "Love Nest" combined! It will be cracking you up unstoppably, especially in the second part of the film when Buster's rival returns to revenge and begins screwing up all his smart devices. What was caused by this is just wildly hilarious!

Unfortunately, the print quality is very low, some frames seem to be absent, and there is no soundtrack. I found it with the music score at classiccinemaonline.com. That version is also 4 min longer!

Reviewer: Showbizbuff - - January 24, 2008
Subject: The Dawn of Invention
The idea of inventing as an avocation must have been on everyone's mind in the early years of the 20th century. The use of electricity was in it's infancy and the producers of this film decided to electrify everything in the professor's house. You will see an early example of an escalator, one idea which became practical in department stores. The pool table which racks its own balls has not become available to us. Conveyer belts are in evidence along with electric trains for bringing food and dishes to the dining table. Buster Keaton, of course, adds the zest to this smorgasbord of comedy delights.

Reviewer: nolight - - May 13, 2006
Subject: modern times?
There are some great stunts in this film and I love the idea of the film. The "inventions" shown the film are really funny and how they deal with is really cool. It does remind me of so many things that we use nowadays that would give 5 points.
But what I do not like is the contrast in parts of the film. They are not OK, so I give 4 points.